president obama's massive and raucous, the one mitt romney staged just south of the beltway, the one i attended, much more laid back, much smaller. some of the romney supporters said they wanted more passion. ten miles from the pentagon, in springfield, virginia, mitt romney spoke to veterans, blaming president obama for the agreement with republicans to slash defense spending if there's no budget deal by january 1st. >> the idea of cutting our military commitment by $1 trillion over this decade is unthinkable. and devastating. >> reporter: romney's polls in this battleground state looked potentially devastating. he's trailing by 3% to 7%. romney backers like dave mill are worried. >> he has to get a little more fire in the belly. >> reporter: more romney, the businessman, suggests soccer mom, monica cameron. >> it's all about the economy. >> reporter: president obama was in virginia, pushing an elitist image of romney in a tv ad to run here. putting faces on the 47% of americans romney said he sees as dependent on government. >> i see hard-working virginians. i see students trying t